Japanese symbol for “dig”
掘る
ほる
Romaji: horu
to dig; to excavate; to hollow
In Japanese, dig is 掘る, read ほる (horu).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- v5r, vt to dig; to excavate; to hollow
- v5r, vt to delve into
- v5r, vt to dig up (vegetables, treasure, etc.); to mine (coal, ore, etc.)
- v5r, vt to top; to take the active role in anal sex (with another man)
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “dig”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 切る | きる kiru | to dig (a groove); to cut (a stencil, on a mimeograph) |
| 突っ込み | つっこみ tsukkomi | quip; gibe; jab |
| 当てつけ | あてつけ atetsuke | something done out of spite; snide remark; insinuation |
| 発掘調査 | はっくつちょうさ hakkutsuchousa | excavation (usu. archeological); dig |
| 災害図上訓練 | さいがいずじょうくんれん saigaizujoukunren | disaster simulation exercise; disaster imagination game; DIG |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 発掘 | はっくつ hakkutsu | excavation; exhumation; digging up |
| 採掘 | さいくつ saikutsu | mining; digging; working (a mine) |
| 掘削 | くっさく kussaku | digging out; excavation |
| 盗掘 | とうくつ toukutsu | illegal digging; illegal mining; grave robbing |
| 試掘 | しくつ shikutsu | prospecting; trial digging |
See also: Chinese symbol for “dig”.
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.